Dream it Up—and Make it Happen

“Spiritual” circles make a big deal out of “manifestation”: the act of seeing and feeling what you desire so fully that you open the space for it to emerge within your life, supported by the benevolent universe. I’ve seen it happen; however, I’m also aware of how often people willfully believe in illusions and denial, especially when it comes to relationships, setting themselves up for a hard fall when reality hits.

The two instances are two sides of the same coin, or a kind of double bind, if you will: If you don’t believe in your vision, how can it manifest? Yet if you fail to recognize reality, how can you possibly create anything with a solid foundation?

Part of the trick is knowing that it’s not a black and white, either/or situation. Whether you’re talking about art or love, it’s necessary to hold both an understanding of what’s real (your art supplies and your skill; or who your lover truly is, apart from who you wish they were) and what you can imagine is possible.

Enter Venus, making a conjunction to Neptune in Pisces, exact Friday at 10:23 pm EDT. This might be the most creative, intuitive, wet, and sexy placement for the most artistically inspired, spiritually loving, vision-manifesting planetary pair going. Not only that, it’s in effect now and peaks as we enter the weekend—perfect timing for most people to use the energy with minimal interference from work and other weekday commitments.

At its highest expression in relationships, Venus conjunct Neptune confers a sense of soul-union with another person, and a selflessness that’s very generous and approaches “divine compassion.” As with all things, though, it has a shadow expression to be aware of: the potential for the object of your love and devotion not to live up to your expectations, if they were a little too high (or downright delusional) to begin with. Can you see the raw materials of your partner clearly and allow yourself to be guided by a vision of what is possible?

At its highest expression in creativity, Venus-Neptune has the potential to unleash some truly unbridled creative inspiration and translate it into physical, tangible art. Whether your thing is visual art, music, drama or some other medium (Food? Furniture? Landscaping?), this is a ripe moment just begging you to reach up and pluck it.

And lest you get hung up on the potentially delusional side of the Venus-Neptune coin, the rest of the sky now is essentially one big reality check and lesson in practical initiative, individuation in the face of relationships, and good ol’ “get ‘er done.”

Speaking of which: Eric is currently blazing away at his recordings for the 2014 Planet Waves Spring Reading, which covers what promises to be some very tangible, once-in-a-lifetime astrology heating up in the next couple weeks. For now, let the masculine/feminine, yin/yang, ethereal/material merging of Venus and Neptune wet your whistle, and see how much of your ideal you can bring into reality.